A living will provides guidance to healthcare professionals for essential end-of-life treatment in the event of mental or physical incapacitation. Within your living will, you indicate your medical care and treatment preferences. This ensures that your wishes are known and executed. Living wills can also eliminate conflict between family members or guardians, who may disagree over the best method of care.

Your will only takes effect after you die, clearly establishes the fate of your assets, and passes through probate. In contrast, a trust takes effect upon creation and transfers ownership to the trust. Within the trust, a trustee controls the assets for the persons that you designate as beneficiaries. Depending on your wishes, the trust beneficiaries commonly receive or get the benefit of the trust assets after your death. Transfers within a trust occur outside of the probate process and can be an effective tool for avoiding probate and maintaining privacy.

If you fail to implement business succession planning, an owner’s death can put your company in financial or legal jeopardy. Hardyman│DiVerde can create secure trusts that directly transfer ownership to a designated heir or other individual and also bypass the probate process. We can discuss your business’s current situation and develop a customized estate plan to preserve the value of your company for future generations.

If you have been named as an estate’s executor, you manage the deceased’s estate. This includes an extensive list of duties, including locating assets, paying off outstanding debts, determining whether probate is necessary, distributing assets to heirs or legatees, and correctly filing all paperwork with the courts. The process can quickly become overwhelming, and simple mistakes may be held against you. Our experienced attorneys will help guide you throughout the process and ensure that all steps are properly executed.